Izakaya Tori Mount Lawley

Izakaya Tori Mount Lawley is a casual Japanese bar and diner on Walcott Street, serving the kind of food designed for sharing, grazing and settling in with a drink. The menu draws on Japanese street-food favourites, with fried chicken, grilled skewers, hotpot dishes, noodles, rice dishes, salads and sashimi all represented. It is a walk-in-only venue, fully licensed and also welcomes BYO wine every day, making it a straightforward option for an unplanned meal or a relaxed catch-up.

Fried chicken is a clear focus. The menu includes Tori Fried Chicken wings, chicken karaage, spicy karaage, chicken nanban with tartar sauce, and several styles of chicken wings and ribs. There is plenty beyond poultry, including takoyaki, gyoza, tempura prawns, sashimi, beef tataki and agedashi tofu. The yakitori selection is cooked over a flame grill and includes wagyu beef, chicken thigh, pork belly, scallop, eel and shiitake mushroom, while the hotpot section covers options such as beef sukiyaki, salmon chilli miso, seafood chilli miso and mushrooms with vegetables.

For something more substantial, the menu moves through udon, yaki soba, sizzling dishes, fried rice, donburi and ramen. The ramen choices use chicken and pork broth, with shoyu, shio, sesame miso and kimchi variations. There are also vegetarian choices, including vegetable dumplings, vegetable tempura, tofu dishes, mushroom and vegetable hotpot, vegetable fried rice and tofu-based donburi. Drinks are a significant part of the offering, with Japanese beers, cocktails, mocktails, sake, shochu and wine available alongside soft options.

The venue describes itself as a neighbourhood bar and diner with a relaxed atmosphere, chilled energy and good music. Its approach to food is centred on care, responsibility and the ongoing pursuit of flavour rather than relying on novelty or secret techniques. That makes it suited to groups of friends wanting to share several plates, particularly as larger bookings of eight or more are asked to call ahead. It can also work for a casual meal for two or a solo visit at the bar, although bookings are not taken and seating is walk-in only.